Early voting in Senate District 6 race wraps up Tuesday

Early voting in the special election for state Senate District 6 ends Tuesday. The election is Saturday.

More than 6,700 voters had cast their ballots through last week at seven locations in Houston, Baytown and Galena Park. The district covers much of Houston's East End, as well as parts of Baytown and Pasadena.

Eight candidates - five Democrats, two Republicans and a member of the Green Party - are vying to succeed state Sen. Mario Gallegos Jr., who was elected posthumously in November. Gov. Rick Perry set the election date last month and will set a runoff date if none of the candidates gets 50 percent of the vote.

Two of those Democrats, state Rep. Carol Alvarado, 45, who also served six years on the Houston city council, and Sylvia Garcia, 62, a former Harris County commissioner and city of Houston controller, are considered the frontrunners.

The three other Democrats in the race are Joaquin Martinez, 32, who describes himself as a "silent community leader in the East End"; Rufolfo M. "Rudy" Reyes, 59, a business consultant and former member of the League City City Council; and Susan Delgado, 48, a real estate broker and former stripper who challenged Gallegos in 2004 and 2008. The Green Party candidate is Maria Selva, 52, a community organizer.